Helios® Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection
Customer Reviews
Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ Collection
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G. Jennings
One of the Coolest
I purchased the Helios 69 as soon as it came out. I put it in the unison position in my mic channel and was delighted to find I could get a crunchier tone on my voice with this one, than with the Neve 1073. I still sing with the Neve on some songs, but there's a huge need for what I'm hearing now. And besides singing, I've found a lot of the presets to be exactly what I was looking for on an instrument track. Also, I haven't really had a tube overdrive that didn't just break up wrong. With this channel strip, I just bump the trim up one click and certain things break up just right. If I want less I just throw a "gain" in front of it. The earlier helios was a go-to for me when I wanted mids. It always seems more effective than the pultec (which I love for that low end). But this is easier to work with and sounds even better. I would love to see a model of the helios mix buss.
T. Allen
Perfect for single coil guitars.
Really enjoyed the clean mids this brought out! Nice color. I’m mind blown by the unisen technology! Wish I had them all!
J. Fritsch
That’s Rock’n roll!
Amazing treatment of the mids and exklusive satuartion all over.
D. Bires
Does what it says. Smooth highs without the brittle.
I really like this Type 69 preamp because how it works and reacts with one particular mic. The "sm7b". In unison all I can say for me the matchup up is great. I also paired up with the EL 8 Distressor with it on vocals recording straight into my DAW. I have almost a perfect sound going right in. I feel UA is right about the Highs in the EQ where they sound true and not so brittle. Also when I made slight high end adjustments it was really easy to dial in a near perfect vocal right out the gate. Just a super nice unison plugin. I am actually starting to trust UA's unison technology over my hardware preamps more and more.
J. North
Great for Tracking
Insane mids and great saturation for tracking with Apollo interfaces.
T. Wettstein
The best EQ so far
So smooth and rich. I'm absolutely amazed. No comparison to the legacy version.
R. Panossian
My new favourite !
It didn’t take much for this to be my new favourite preamp, it sounds just perfect for voice and guitars to give them that in your face kind of colour and presence, give it a try and you won’t be able not to keep thinking of it until you buy it. I love it ! I just wished the gain increments where not by 10db
N. Dettenbach
wow and wow
This thing is really wow!...
...and could be the next UAD classic after the big Neve preamp. For me, this is a full step forward from the Neve. The colours are highly musical, even if driving hot and bold, without getting mppfffh in any way (as the very most other digital emus on the market). May be i've heard to much Hendrix Vinyls as i was a kid, but this one beamed me into a new analog emu dimension. This is analog emu as it should be and i'm still deeply in thinking / fiddling with these palette on modern sound / music genres.
UAD - you nailed it! thank you!
m. adragna
simply amazing
I already had and love the helios eq (my to go for electric guitar and snare), now with the unison preamp I can already get that sound in recording
T. Platt
A Real "Blast From the Past" !
I learned to engineer using this mic. pre. and EQ. I instantly recognised the character and warmth from those old Helios consoles at Basing Street. A particular feature that you have captured is the ability to drive the mic. pre. that gives a distinct "bite" without harshness. My hybrid recording console has taken yet another step towards perfection!
J. Appel
A bit fuller
A long time fan of the Waves version of the 69, I find that, like most UA versions, the Helios 69 is fuller and richer sounding. Really like what it can do to vocals.
J. MESSINA
Very Musical
I always liked the hardware version of the Helios EQ. This UAD Helios Type 69 Preamp and EQ is killer. The pre has a 'fat' and 'warm' color to it. I love the musicality of the EQ. It's a handy tool, to have, for those files that need some 'in your face' life.
P. Williams
great on vocals
This will become my go-to on vocals, with just a touch of EQ on the way through. It has a big, smooth vintage vibe on tenor vocals. When I want a grittier, modern sound I will continue to use the API channel, but as of right now this seems like the best all around vocal unison strip that they've released. (I own most of them). To me it kind of does the Neve coloration thing but is not so scooped, vocals just sit right in the mix without much fuss. Very impressed.
m. james
Home run!
Loved the now legacy version. They've taken it up a few levels. Can't wait to try it in Unison!
M. Cox
Great with a few shortcomings
Love the tone and color of the product, but I'm definitely not in love with the +4/-4 db increments on the top band.
D. Gallucci
Amazing
I used to own four type 69 reissues and this plug in sounds so much better than those ever did. It's one of the first plug ins I've heard that instantly added a true analogue sound to anything I put it on.
D. Gallucci
Amazing
I used to own four type 69 reissues and this plug in sounds so much better than those ever did. It's one of the first plug ins I've heard that instantly added a true analogue sound to anything I put it on.
S. Chahley
Pure rock'n roll dirty sex....
No more words needed. Essential if 'coloured' tones make you smile. Forget the rest, Helios is best......
P.S. I agree with the criticism of only 4 dB steps on the 10k shelf, but couldn't bring myself to remove any stars because this EQ/pre is THAT GOOD......how about making the gain switchable between 2 and 4 dB steps???
T. Howard
Great Sound. Too expensive and a DSP hog.
Noticed a significant sonic difference as soon as I kicked it in. Especially acoustic guitars and lead guitar sounds. On a bass track it was truly exceptional! Even with UAs heavy pricing scheme, I would struggle not to give this 5 stars. As the title suggests, this guy takes up a good chunk of DSP. Be aware of that. I cannot wait to use this on more stuff.
M. DiSanto
Favorite EQ just got way better
Loved the legacy version for EQ but the added character of the new version makes an incredible difference. Just insert on a few tracks with no EQ and A/B. Seems to add a beautiful kind of low-end weight.
only (very minor) complaint is that the frequency locations differ from original so it’s impossible to a/b the eq with the original. not that there’s any doubt that it sounds better.